The last thing anyone wants is to chip or break a tooth or even experience stains that won’t go away. A chip or crack can look unsightly, be a health hazard, or even result in extraordinary pain. You cannot ignore a serious issue like a crack, chip, or outright break. You need to head to a dentist ASAP, though how you fix the cosmetic issues is still up in the air. You can get a job done at your local dentist or choose a more permanent, attractive option like veneers.
Ultimately it’s up to you, your budget, and your needs.
What to Do If You Have Persistent Staining on Your Tooth
If you have persistent staining on your tooth or a hairline fracture, then there’s no amount of brushing that’ll get rid of it. This persistent staining or fractures may mean that your enamel has worn through. You cannot naturally grow enamel back, and, in fact, it means that your whole tooth is compromised. If you aren’t vigilant, that issue will become a cavity and may even result in a root canal. Sometimes issues are just surface level, but that doesn’t mean you can be complacent. If the stain or crack only seems to be darkening, it’s important you seek out a dental professional.
Fixing the issue may be done with a tooth whitening treatment, but more often than not, you’ll want to go to professionals like those at Best Dental to get veneers done. Veneers can help give your teeth a whole new lease of life for many different conditions, from stains to cracks to even breaks.
What to Do If You Have a Cracked Tooth
If there’s a crack in your tooth, then you absolutely need to go get it fixed. While yes, some cracks or breaks pose no threat to the root of your tooth, there is always that risk. You need to go in and see what’s happening and then get the issue fixed while you are at it. You may have the tooth repaired, may have it taken out entirely to have an implant put in its stead, or may get a veneer to fix the issue.
What to Do If Your Tooth Broke in Half
Teeth breaking in half most commonly happens due to impact damage. Your front teeth are most susceptible, though it can happen to any of your teeth due to a hit to the face or you biting down hard on something that will not give. How you go about fixing the issue will largely depend on the break, your budget, and what you want to do. You can have half your front tooth broken off or a chip broken off without doing anything at all. You can alternatively get the break bonded with a fake tooth so that it looks natural, though this won’t be as strong as, say, replacing the tooth with an implant or getting veneers.
When it comes to seamlessly fixing the option with a fake tooth, go for ceramic. These fake options should be made after taking your tooth’s measurements and other data like its color to match the rest of your teeth.
What to Do If You’ve Lost a Tooth
There are three main options if you have lost a tooth. One lost tooth can, for example, be left alone. You can have a gap with no ill effects, though your teeth will likely shift out of place without at least a stopgap.
That’s why most usually opt for either dentures or an implant. Dentures essentially suction into place to help ease the burden of lacking that tooth. They’re more commonly used when there are several teeth missing rather than just one.
A single missing tooth, on the other hand, is usually better fixed with an implant. With implants, a mount is drilled into your jaw that the fake tooth is then attached to. This gives the fake tooth superior strength and lets it work like a natural tooth would.
What to Do If You Have Gum Issues
If your gums are receding, inflamed, or in acute pain of any kind (especially if there wasn’t an injury), then you need to go to a dentist or hospital, as infection is likely the answer. In the most extreme cases, that infection can become sepsis, but long before it reaches that stage, you will be in extreme pain. Go to get the issue checked out the moment you have an ongoing ache to get the issue fixed immediately.